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THE ELEPHANT IN THE ROOM
By Stephen L.
Gibson
(All rights reserved)
The unspoken
reality behind the 9/11 attacks; abortion rights; stem cell debates;
combating AIDS; and global conflict in general
When it comes to discussions of culture wars, global conflicts, 9/11,
and the war on terror, there is an “elephant in the room” that few
people seem willing to discuss. Many will reluctantly admit it when it
is pointed out, but most will quickly revert to straw men and red
herrings in order to avoid further discussion. After all, if it escapes
our lips and we acknowledge it, we won’t be able to ignore it anymore.
Then, we would have to deal with it and perhaps even be introspective—a
frightening thought indeed. As we all know, it’s much easier to point to
the flawed thinking in others, than it is to look in the mirror.
So what is the elephant in the room? No, it isn’t as simple as greed,
oil, Bush family connections, or even geopolitics. The elephant in the
room is the reality that religion—and confident, supposedly infallible
knowledge about a mysterious supernatural realm—is at the center of
virtually all of our most volatile disagreements and conflicts. From
debates about stem cells and end-of-life care, to evolution, condoms in
Africa, Palestine, Iraq, and self-fulfilling expectations about how the
world will end, the ways in which one interprets ancient texts and
envisions things happening in a magical and unknowable realm, are
principal determinants of the “solutions” one proposes to the conflicts.
But you say such beliefs are not the underlying cause? Perhaps. But even
if these ingrained worldviews are not the direct cause of the
most worrisome of global problems, they are most certainly a profound
common denominator, and a primary force in sustaining and exacerbating
them.
If we are honest, we would admit that in no other aspect of life would
we ignore such an obvious correlation to violence and conflict. There
have been extensive studies and great public debate about the impact of
drugs and alcohol, interpersonal skills, domestic strife, and even
psychological and sociological factors—upon conflicts between humans. We
similarly discuss the roles of education and access to firearms in
creating or tempering violence and conflict. But what do we do when the
topic is that of the ultimate destiny of humankind, hermeneutics and
history, or God’s will? We avert our gaze and pretend the elephant does
not exist. We say nothing, but perhaps seek to affirm and shore up our
current beliefs by reading more books that support what we already know
to be true.
So why do we refuse to acknowledge the elephant? Why don’t we want to
talk about this undeniable reality? Why don’t we openly discuss who is
right, or criticize the other person’s “flawed” religious notions?
Perhaps like a magician’s misdirection, human minds are able to protect
themselves against opening such scary lines of inquiry—those that at
first glance could appear to threaten not only our adversaries’ beliefs,
but ours as well—including everything that defines us, everything we
believe, and everything that composes the picture we have painted of how
the world and the universe work. The truth is that if we open the door
and start examining the legitimacy of others’ supernatural claims or
historical arguments—we might not like the answers any more than they
do. “What,” we ask, “if someone begins to question my claims?” Indeed it
is safer that no one break the unspoken agreement—the one that says we
will not speak of the elephant.
There is another angle worthy of exploration, however. Perhaps we’ve
been stung too many times throughout history. Haven’t we demonstrated a
complete lack of ability to hold interfaith discussions without venom,
condescension, hatred, and bigotry? When, in the history of the world,
have we ever been able to be intellectually honest, loving, kind and
polite in the manner, time, and place of examining belief? Almost never!
Historically speaking, the only way we’ve seen religious beliefs and
teachings criticized is with a harsh word, the tip of sword, or the
recoil of a gun. Can anyone blame us for ignoring the elephant in the
room?
So the questions become these: Must we be mean-spirited, impolite,
aggressive, and rude? Must we viciously attack other religions as we try
to weigh the merits of their historical claims? Must we segregate
ourselves from those who exercise their human rights to disagree with us
and cling to their beliefs, however irrational we may find them? Or is
it possible that we can honor disagreements, roll up our sleeves, focus
on the many areas of human interest on which there is agreement—like
cleaning up after a Tsunami or feeding the poor—and simultaneously begin
an intellectually honest dialogue about the elephant in the room?
For the sake of humanity, it would seem that now is the time to “get
real” with ourselves, and with one another—for even more important
reasons than exploring our many common-ground issues. As technology
advances to the point where information and knowledge are available to
all, it seems only a matter of time until weapons of mass destruction,
much more powerful than hijacked airplanes—or even miracle drugs,
scientific discoveries, or technological breakthroughs—will be the
accelerant that ignites an unprecedented act of destruction in defense
of one’s own understanding of that mysterious realm outside everything
that is known to humankind. Even if this act in defense of beliefs is
not a “dangerous” one—in the same sense that flying a plane into a
building is dangerous, it could still be tragically costly: lost
opportunities to save lives, cure diseases, or advance society and
knowledge.
Intellectually honest dialogue about the foundations of our beliefs will
be a sizeable challenge, but we must make the effort to begin the
critical examination of claims concerning the supernatural, and we must
do it now. Perhaps if we can embrace the underlying, mythological
truths of many of our faith traditions, and love and honor one
another as ourselves, we can also begin building trust as we examine
this essential accelerant of so much segregation, divisiveness, and
conflict: this elephant in the room.
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